The Blackout
by NocturneD
Summary: Lightning strikes a transformer making the power go out at Lakewood Elementary on picture day no less...
1. Chapter 1

The Black Out

By NocturneD

Note: random story.

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><p>"Today is the day Arthur." The young aardvark around the age of eight years finished primping himself in front of the bathroom mirror. "Today is picture day." Arthur laid out his best clothes the previous night to prevent wrinkles. Though he could have hung it with a coat hanger which also would have worked. The young aardvark combed his hair to the right angle he wanted it. He threw on a dress shirt and slid on his clip-on tie<p>

Only one thing is missing as Arthur viewed himself in the mirror one more time. "Hey mom?" He called.

"Yes honey?" Jane Read answered from down the staircase.

"Where are my dress pants?" Arthur asked.

"Are they not in your room?" Jane asked.

"No. I was hoping you would bring me up a pair!" Arthur answered as he stuck his head out of the bathroom doorway.

"Wait. They could be down in the cellar still with the other laundry." Jane went down the cellar and approached the washing machine and dryer. She checked the dryer first to find it completely empty. With a bit of dread she checked the washing machine next, flipping open the top to find that yesterdays laundry was still there.

"Crap." Jane grunted. "We forgot to do the laundry the other day." She reached into the washing machine to pull out what would look like Arthur's dress pants. Still soaked and damp. She looked further into the machine to pull out more smaller pairs of jeans. "Oh no."

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><p>Four hours later...<p>

"And that is the reason I am wearing a bathing suit for pants." Arthur finished his story to his friends at the lunch table.

Francine could not help but laugh despite Arthur's protest. "I am sorry Arthur. Sorry."

"Yeah. On picture day they mostly focus above the waist anyway." Buster then took a bite out of the macaroni and cheese served for lunch.

"So Francine?" Arthur asked.

"Yeah?" Francine answered.

"I heard you converted to a new religion." Arthur gripped his peanut butter and jelly sandwich in between his fingers. "What made you change?"

"Is it Christianity?" Brain asked while picking away at his pasta salad he brought from home.

"Nope. We converted to Cthulhuism." Francine smirked.

"Katua-what?" Arthur raised an eyebrow.

"Cthulhuism." Brain corrected his friend. "A religion that worships strange deities but one most important, Cthulhu. A giant octopus god created by H.P. Lovecraft who also wrote other stories, but mostly the Call of Cthulhu gets the most attention."

"A giant what?" Arthur dropped his sandwich.

"Sound cool." Buster was intrigued.

"Pfft." Francine cackled. "Guys it is a cover up story to make people leave me and my family alone. I am still Jewish and proud, we just say Cthulhuism to make them go away. Just keep it a secret okay?"

"Sounds pretty cool to me." Buster smiled.

Suddenly a loud thunderous roar echoed from outside the school. The friends turned to the window to see the weather took a nasty turn from being sunny to cloudy. Rain drops started to pour from the sky and splat against the windows.

"Well it was scheduled to rain today." Brain brought up.

Another loud roar pierced the skies as flashes danced around the murky clouds. Again and again until a lightning bolt struck the transformer outside of the school. Sparks flew from the metal box as the lights inside the school were flickering on and off. Some of the children were bewildered, scared or found it interesting. The sound of power waned until... the lights finally went out.

"OH NO!" One child shouted.

"Cool!" Another one hollered.

"Maybe they will let us go home!" Another random child screamed.

"The back up power should come on." Brain turned to his friends or so he thought. "Any... second..." The lights did not come back on. "Give it another minute."

"WE'RE DOOMED!" Another student shouted.

"I JUST PISSED MYSELF!" One student screamed.

"Oh good now no one will see my bathing suit." Arthur smiled.

Buster turned his head to see with just enough light from the window of his fellow classmate Binky. "Hey Binky? Why is there a ruler sticking out of the back of your underwear?"

Just then the sound of the lunchroom doors opened. With very little light the children could not see who it was because the window's light could not reach the other side of the room.

"Children! We have a power outage! Please remain calm as we are going to try to get the back up power on. As of still, picture day will remain on schedule." Mr. Haney announced.

"How are we supposed to get our pictures taken in the dark?" Francine asked.

"They seem confident. They'll get the back up power on." Brain answered.

"Man that would be so cool if the power stayed off for the rest of the day." Buster smiled.

"Who keeps touching me with a ruler?" Arthur asked.

_to be continued..._


	2. Chapter 2

The Blackout

By NocturneD

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><p>Francine pressed the sides of her digital watch with her thumb and index finger. A small blue glow pierced the pitch darkness within the cafeteria. Her eyes fluttered as the plasma graced her face as the watch read twelve thirty four. Time has not passed nearly enough to go on about their business. Not with Mr. Haney frequently announcing over and over that the students remain at the lunch tables until the power is back on.<p>

About that time Arthur Read found out what was poking him and grabbed the ruler before it could poke again. He hurled the piece of wood in a random direction along with a tinging sound to signify that it hit something.

"It would be kind of cool to get our school picture in the dark actually." Buster smiled.

"How would it even work? The pictures would be all black." Arthur turned to his rabbit friend, or so who he thought was Buster.

"Actually, the flash from the camera would help so that the picture would not come out so dark." Their friend Brain pointed out. "Though, really it's just a signal for the camera to go off."

"Well maybe the power will come on after this hour is over." Binky added. "By the way where is my ruler?" Arthur ignored the large boy and as much as he wanted to hit him, he probably would miss and end up hitting another kid instead.

More time passed as Francine checked her watch again. "Twelve after one PM." She told her friends still waiting in the dark. "This is stupid."

"You're preaching to the choir Francine." Brain sighed as he tried to preserve the battery on his expensive phone he received for his battery. " Another hour of this and my phone battery will be down to zero."

"CHILDREN! IF I CAN HAVE YOUR ATTENTION PLEASE?" Mr. Haney announced.

"I do not know. Can you?" One student asked in a mocking tone. Soon a fit of giggles erupted within the darkness.

"May I?" Principal Haney asked.

"You may." The same student answered.

"Oh good. As I was about to say. The transformer outside is still being worked on and we should have power anytime soon." Mr. Haney explained further. "Picture day will still be on schedule."

Arthur and his friends turned their heads to look outside the lunchroom window to find a few workers outside screwing off and not doing their work. Tools were thrown about around the work area while the workers played on their cell phones or smoking cigarettes under some shelter.

"Does not look like anytime soon." Francine frowned.

"MR. HANEY SUCKS!" Shouted one student.

"Now who said that?" Mr. Haney put his hands on his hips.

"YOUR MOM!" The same student exclaimed.

"She did? Well now..." Mr. Haney adjusted his glasses.

"QUIET!" Muffy hollered. "I'm trying to read Fifty Shades of Gray on my Ipad!"

Sue Ellen stood up and quickly grabbed Muffy's piece of technology and chucked it across the lunchroom.

"HEY!" Muffy squealed.

"You'll thank me later." Sue Ellen frowned.

Meanwhile at the teachers lounge. The darkness still roamed every crack and crevice of the room. Flashlights and emergency tap lights pierced the darkness in defense of the teachers.

"What a terrible thing to happen on picture day." Miss Sweetwater proclaimed as she let the glow of her cell phone grace her face.

"Well it could be worse. Like that summer job I took up years ago when this town still had that Freddy's Fazbears Pizzeria around." Mr. Ratburn kept flickering the flashlight on and off again. "That is not a place where you want the power to go out."

"Whatever happened to that place anyway?" Mr. Margo asked while he tried to pour himself another cup of coffee with the limited light over the counter top.

"Closed down and left to rot." Mr. Ratburn felt a shiver go down his spine. "Eventually someone would try to reopen it from time to time but something would always happen. Think the new owners decided to move out west with whatever is left of the place."

"Anyone remember pogs?" A male teacher asked.

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><p><em><strong>to be continued...<strong>_


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